The invention relates to an image recording apparatus for recording an image on a sheet being transported on a sheet transport path.
In electrophotographic image recording apparatus, a sheet is fed from a sheet feeding tray to an image recording section where an image is formed on the sheet. Then the sheet is output to a sheet output tray. A sheet may become jammed on its way on a sheet transport path.
A sheet jam is likely to occur particularly in the image recording section. This is because a sheet tends to be curled while undergoing various processes in the image recording section such as: a developer-image transfer process performed by a transfer device; or a fusing process performed by a fusing device.
A sheet jam is also likely to occur in a reversing transport path on which, in duplex image formation (an image is formed on both sides of a sheet), a sheet with an image formed on a first side is reversed and transported back to the image recording section. This is because the duplex image formation involves a sheet passing through many bifurcations of the sheet transport path.
In the event of a sheet jam, image recording apparatus suspend an image forming process until all sheets present on the sheet transport path are removed. JP H09-134050A discloses that a sheet jammed in the image recording section is removed by pulling forward the image recording section out of the image recording apparatus and by opening a side wall, or the like, of the section to expose the sheet transport path.
The configuration as disclosed by the prior art apparatus, however, involves a small level of exposure of a portion of the sheet transport path located in the image recoding section, even with the image recording section pulled out and the side wall opened. Thus, this configuration renders it hard for a user to remove a jammed sheet. In particular, recent image recording apparatus with high functionality have a complex configuration that renders it hard to provide a large space for removing a jammed sheet.
In consecutive image formation that involves a plurality of sheets present on the sheet transport path, a user is necessitated, if only a small level of exposure of sheet transport path is available, to open side walls or the like of different portions of the image recording section in order to check if all the sheets are removed from the sheet transport path.
In light of the foregoing, a feature of the invention is to provide an image recording apparatus having a simplified configuration that provides a large space for removing a sheet from the sheet transport path in the event of trouble such as a sheet jam.